In jurisdictions where casino gambling and slot machines are legal, slot machines account for the majority of gaming revenues. In a casino, it is common to see 70% or more of the gaming floor space dedicated to slot machines, both of the reel spinning and video varieties. Typically these machines make their return on investment based on two to four hours of play per day. They offer an experience tailored to individual play. The popularity of these machines is related to the variety of the games offered, the simplicity of the rules, and the attraction of the themes. In addition to the experience offered by the game, the player is assured that the game offers a reasonable chance of winning. This assurance is due to the game being subject to a variety of governmental and regulatory oversight. Wagering devices are highly regulated, and each machine must pass governmentally dictated requirements or it will not be approved for use. Although these regulatory requirements often vary from one gaming jurisdiction to another, the player is assured of a fair game of chance as dictated by that jurisdiction's governing regulatory body, regardless of the jurisdiction in which the machine and the player are located.
Remote-based gaming offers gaming operators the opportunity to offer gaming to remote locations and, correspondingly, provide remote users with access to gaming. The increasing popularity and number of Internet-based casinos confirms this proposition. Remote-based gaming to date has been based either on live events such as horse racing and sports wagering, or virtual games replicating the games played in traditional casino games. See, e.g., U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,800,268, to Molnick, 5,762,552, to Vuong et al., and 4,467,424, to Hedges et al., which are incorporated by reference in their entirety. Virtual games offer an operator the distinct advantage of allowing an unlimited number of users to access one software-based game. A single computer server can host a suite of games that may be accessed by a theoretically unlimited number of players. See, e.g., U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,586,937, to Menahse, 6,080,063, to Khosla, and 6,117,011, to Lvov, which are incorporated by reference in their entirety. The use of virtual games for wagering has three major disadvantages for the operator and the player: high software development costs, the time and costs associated with the regulatory approval process, and lack of consumer confidence in the honesty of the game. The present invention alleviates these disadvantages while providing a higher return on investment than found in a traditional casino.